


Two in the Morning

by xo_marauders



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Child Abuse, Chronic Illness, Homophobia, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Lupus, M/M, Remus is a Good Boyfriend, Sad Sirius Black, Supportive James Potter, cuz the Blacks are terrible people, its alluded to, james is a good friend
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-18
Updated: 2020-03-18
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:42:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,848
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23204146
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xo_marauders/pseuds/xo_marauders
Summary: “Hello?”It was two o’clock in the morning when James’ phone began to ring at an obnoxiously loud volume. He picked it up hastily, not wanting to risk waking his parents at such an hour and answered it in a groggy voice.“…James?”***or James receives a disturbing call early in the morning from Sirius and rushes to his best friends aid (I am bad at summaries but it's pretty angsty)
Relationships: Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Comments: 5
Kudos: 251





	Two in the Morning

**Author's Note:**

> tw: graphic depictions of violence, homophobia, child abuse   
> take care of yourselves

“Hello?” 

It was two o’clock in the morning when James’ phone began to ring at an obnoxiously loud volume. He picked it up hastily, not wanting to risk waking his parents at such an hour and answered it in a groggy voice. 

“…James?” 

It felt as though James’ veins had turned to ice at the tone of his best friends voice on the other line, though it took James’ still sleepy mind to understand why. Sirius was never one to sound so small and afraid. He was usually so loud and lively and hearing the brokenness of his tone made James instantly feel like something was wrong. 

“Sirius?” He sat up quickly, head spinning a bit at the rush of it. “Sirius, what’s wrong? Are you okay?” 

As he waited for his friends reply, he shoved his glasses onto his face and tucked the phone between his ear and shoulder as he quickly began getting dressed, pulling his trousers over his pants. Sirius was quiet on the other line, but James knew he was there due to the shaky breaths he was emitting. 

“Can you come get me?” Sirius nearly sobbed when he finally spoke again. James nodded, slipping his shoes on before realizing his friend couldn’t see the gesture. 

“Yeah. Yes, of course. Where are you?” 

“I…” Sirius hesitated. “I don’t really know. I just sort of…ran. I can’t go back there, James. I just can’t. They—I—“ He broke off with a guttural sound and James felt concern and anger rise up inside of him all at once. Of course Sirius’ family was the reason for his distress. 

The Black family were not the most caring of people and it showed very clearly with the state they left their eldest son in more often than not. When they were younger and just starting out their years together in boarding school, Sirius would always convince James, along with their dorm friends, Remus and Peter, that everything was fine. That he had broken his arm falling out of a tree or the bruise on his face was from a stray ball that had been thrown in the wrong direction. For a while, the excuses worked, and Sirius was able to keep the truth hidden. 

Things took a turn during their fourth year, though, and James knew something was going on with his friend. He wouldn’t eat properly at dinner time and he woke up screaming nearly every night. Remus had actually taken to sleeping with Sirius at night so that the other boy could at least find some comfort during the night. James had become so frustrated that he had confronted Sirius about it, only for him to have a panic attack and confess everything. He had been so afraid and James had been _furious_. Not with Sirius, of course, but with how his friend was being treated at home. Remus and James both offered to house Sirius over the holidays and summers when they had to go home, but he would refusing, saying that he had to protect his little brother by keeping their parents attention on him. 

“Padfoot,” James said with much more clam than he felt, “I need you to breathe, okay? Remember the exercises Moony taught you?” 

At the mention of Remus, Sirius’ panic seemed to exaggerate. 

“They know.” He choked out. “They know about Remus and I. I don’t know who told them, but it was _bad_ , James. It was so bad…” 

To the surprise of no one in their friend group, Sirius and Remus had finally gotten together after years of pining for one another just a few months back at the beginning of sixth year. It had been hard for Sirius to admit his feelings, having feared the consequences of what it meant to be in love with another boy and James had to constantly reassure him that there was nothing wrong about it and that the extreme views of his parents were wildly inaccurate. 

Sirius was happy with Remus, but he made sure to keep the relationship quite secret out in public. He couldn’t have his parents finding out, knowing that their reaction would be anything but pleasant. Clearly, he was right. 

“Look around, what do the street signs say around you?” James was already out the door and starting his car. 

Sirius stuttered out the street names and James drove well over the speed limit in his direction. He stayed on the phone with Sirius during the drive, not wanting to leave Sirius anymore alone than he had to. When he pulled up the street Sirius had given him directions to, he nearly didn’t recognize the figure of his best friend sitting on the curb. 

Sirius’ knees were tucked tightly up to his chest and his face a smatter of blood and bruises. His long hair looked like it had been hacked off my a blind person and he was holding his ribs tightly, either from pain or cold, James couldn’t tell. 

“ _Fuck_ ,” James muttered to himself as he practically rolled out of the car and to his friends side. Sirius startled when James placed a hand on his shoulder, flinching violently away from the contact before realizing who it was. 

“What did they do to you?” James whispered mostly to himself. 

“It was bad James. I don’t even know how I got out. Some surge of adrenaline, maybe? Moony told me once that adrenaline kicks in when someone is in trouble and can make you do things that you otherwise couldn’t…” Sirius began to ramble as James began examining his friends injuries. There was a split in both his lip and eyebrow and yellowish bruises forming along his jaw and eyes. He moved Sirius’ arm cautiously away from where it was wrapped around his waist and pushed the shirt up just enough to see purpling skin beneath.

“We have to get you to the hospital.”

“No!” Sirius shouted, standing up rapidly, only to fall back down with a groan. James caught him with ease, setting him gently back onto the curb as Sirius coughed terribly.

“You can’t even stand, Sirius. You need medical attention.”

Sirius shook his head. “No. No, James. The hospital would notify my parents, I’m _not_ going.”

James huffed a sigh. Sirius needed help but he knew his friends stubbornness wouldn’t allow James to convince him. There had to be someone who could help, though. Someone that Sirius and James knew who could properly help with injuries like this.

And then it hit him.

“Come on.” He said, pulling Sirius up and helping him to the car. “We’re going to Remus’ house.”

—

Hope Lupin was a nurse practitioner, which was quite convenient since her only child found himself becoming ill at least once a month. Remus had been diagnosed with lupus at a young age, and Hope did everything in her power to help her little boy as best she could, training hard at the hospital and learning as much as she could about the disease. That determination is what made her a great nurse.

James wasn’t sure if Hope would be able to help with all of Sirius’ injuries since he believed some of them to be broken bones, but he knew that Hope was someone Sirius could at least trust in such a time of panic. At first, he had refused, not wanting to bother Hope so late and also not wanting Remus to worry over him.

“It’s either Hope or the hospital, Sirius. You pick.” James has said and Sirius reluctantly caved.

The Lupin house was dark when they arrived with only the dim porch light flickering weakly to show that anyone was home. James hoisted Sirius up out of the car and half dragged half carried him up the front steps before knocking on the front door. For a moment, there was nothing, and then the door swung open with a creak, revealing a very groggy looking Lyall Lupin.

“James? Sirius? What’re you boys doin’ out so late?” He muttered as he waved them inside. As soon as the two young men crossed the threshold into the brighter light of the living room, it became clear to Lyall what was wrong.

“Judas, Sirius. What happened? _Hope!_ ”

Lyall ushered the two boys to take a seat as Hope made her way down the stairs which creaked lightly with each step.

“Lyall, what is—“ she stopped short and her eyes went wide at the sight of Sirius. James watched as Hope immediately shifted into caretaker mode, getting down on her knees in front of Sirius and asking him where he felt pain and if he could rate it on a scale of one to ten.

It became quite apparent that the adrenaline that had made Sirius able to run away from home despite his ailments was quickly fading as his eyes began to droop and shoulders began to sag out of pure exhaustion. He groaned in pain as Hope prodded at his ribs and left wrist.

“I think some ribs have been fractured as well as your wrist, but I can’t be certain. Orthopedics is not my field of expertese.” Hope said. She ordered Lyall to fetch her some bandages and ointment and James stood there a bit helplessly as Sirius’ injuries became more and more exposed in the light.

“Mum?”

James whipped his head to the direction of the stairs where Remus stood, looking rather peaky like he did every so often, and rubbing his eyes sleepily.

“Oh, Remus, dear. You shouldn’t be up. You should be resting.” Hope said with a sweet tone. But her words fell to deaf ears the minute Remus noticed who his mum was kneeling in front of.

“Sirius? _Fy nghariad_ , what happened to you?”

Remus was at his boyfriends side an instant, grabbing hold of the hand that was not being examined by Hope and gave a tight squeeze. Sirius’ eyes fluttered slightly and he gaze fell on Remus, a hint of a smile appearing on his lips.

“S’nothing, Moons. Didn’t wanna worry you…”

“He’s lost a lot of blood.” Hope said as she peeled Sirius t-shirt away from his back, revealing stripes of bright red. James turned away from the sight, feeling himself become sick because of it, fists clenching at his sides.

“He can’t go back, James.” Remus shook his head vigorously. “We can’t let him.”

James looked back down at Remus, at his hand clasped tightly in Sirius’ limp one and felt a wave of protection over Sirius. There was no way James would allow something like this to happen again, he shouldn’t have allowed it to happen in the first place. He would do everything in his power to keep his friend away from harm, away from those wretched people who didn’t even deserve to be Sirius’ family. He would run away to the ends of the earth with Sirius if it meant keeping him safe.

“No, Moony.” James said in a determined tone, placing a hand on the other boys shoulder, “We won’t let anything happen to him. Not anymore.”

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading  
> comments and kudos are always appreciated   
> come chat with me on tumblr @xomarauders


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